Cloud service for making social connections

ABSTRACT

A cloud service for making social connections includes a remote computer storing user accounts, each account including user information and an anonymous ID bound to the user information. A first mobile device transmits an anonymous ID using a limited range wireless signal module and a second mobile device receives the anonymous ID using a limited range wireless signal module of the second mobile device. The second mobile device transmits the received anonymous ID to a remote computer using an Internet connection module and receives the user information bound to the anonymous ID from the remote computer.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This is a division of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/781,769, filedMar. 1, 2013, which claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No.61/729,270, filed Nov. 21, 2012, and both U.S. patent application Ser.No. 13/781,769 and U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/729,270 areincorporated herein by reference in their entireties for all intents andpurposes.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This disclosure relates to simplification of making social connections,and more specifically to the making of social connections using mobiledevices having limited range wireless signal modules and access to aremote computer.

2. Description of the Prior Art

People carry cell-phones, and other wireless capable devices with themeverywhere. However, it remains a problem to easily share informationwith users who are geographically local (e.g. in the same room, orwithin a short distance of each other outside), since it is not possibleto identify those users and their devices. The following inventionaddresses this problem specifically and provides a way for users withwireless devices to identify each other, with associated privacycontrols, and subsequently take action to share information.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A cloud service for making social connections includes a remote computerstoring user accounts, each user account having user providedinformation and an anonymous ID bound to the user information. A firstmobile device transmits the respective anonymous ID bound to theiraccount using a limited range wireless signal module of the first mobiledevice. A second mobile device receives the transmitted anonymous ID viaa limited range wireless signal module of the second mobile device,transmits the received anonymous ID to a remote computer using anInternet connection module of the second mobile device, and receives theuser information bound to the anonymous ID from the remote computer.

The disclosure further includes a mobile device having an internetconnection module, a limited range wireless signal module, a centralprocessing unit, and a memory. The memory includes computer codes, whichwhen executed by the central processing unit, causes the mobile deviceto receive an anonymous ID via the limited range wireless signal module,transmit the received anonymous ID to a remote computer using theInternet connection module, and receive user information bound to theanonymous ID from the remote computer.

The disclosure further includes a method of making social connectionsthat includes a first mobile device transmitting an anonymous ID using alimited range wireless signal module of the first mobile device. Asecond mobile device receives the anonymous ID via a limited rangewireless signal module of the second mobile device and transmits thereceived anonymous ID to a cloud service using an Internet connection.The cloud service responds by transmitting information for an account,providing information bound to the anonymous ID to the second mobiledevice.

These and other objectives of the present invention will no doubt becomeobvious to those of ordinary skill in the art after reading thefollowing detailed description of the preferred embodiment that isillustrated in the various figures and drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram of an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a mobile device according to an embodimentof the invention.

FIG. 3 is a flow chart of binding an anonymous ID to informationassociated with an account with the cloud service.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart illustrating sharing information between mobiledevices according to an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 5 is a flow chart illustrating sharing information between mobiledevices according to another embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

All wireless signals have a useful range that is limited by thetransmission power, antenna type, the location and/or the environmentsin which they are used. However, for the purposes of this disclosure,the phrase “limited range wireless signal” is intended to mean awireless signal that is generally intended to have a relatively shortlimited geographical range of useful signal strength relative to thesource of the wireless signal. Useful signal strength would normally bedetermined by sensitivities of the mobile devices being used to transmitand receive the limited range signals. Some examples of such a limitedrange wireless signal protocols include, inter alia, WI-FI andBluetooth. The phrase “Internet connection” is intended to mean any kindof connection that provides access to the Internet, and may be wiredand/or wireless including cellular technologies, and/or may also makeuse of local or wide area networks when appropriate. Some examples ofsuch an “Internet connection” include, inter alia, a physical cable to anetwork or access point, a WI-FI connection to a network or accesspoint, and/or a connection using cellular technologies to a network,access point, or base station.

A cloud service, which may be hosted by a remote computer, is accessiblevia an Internet connection and is configured to store user accounts.Each user account records the user's identity, a substantially uniqueanonymous ID (identification) associated with that user and/or account,and other ancillary information depending on the application. The cloudservice binds the anonymous ID with the account and the informationtherein.

When users of two mobile devices are physically located within a samegeographical area defined by the useful range of their respectivelimited range wireless signals, they can use the limited range wirelesssignal to make an initial introduction so that information stored in thecloud service by the user of the other mobile device can be accessed,subject to privacy setting determined by the other user.

Please refer to FIG. 2. Each of the mobile devices 200 comprises alimited range wireless signal module 220, an Internet connection module210, and may include a central processing unit (CPU) 230, a memory 230,a display screen 250, and also all necessary connections requiredbetween the elements to allow their proper functioning. The memory 230may comprise computer codes, which when executed by the CPU 230, causethe mobile device 200 to perform the functions described herein. TheInternet connection module 210 and the limited range wireless module 220may, in some embodiments, be unified into a single transceiver accordingto design requirements. Furthermore, the Internet connection module 210and the limited range wireless module 220 may comprise hardware requiredto function as a transceiver or communications port, such as an antenna,amplifiers, and/or physical connectors.

Now, please refer back to FIG. 1 which shows a conceptual diagram of acloud service 100. Two users, each having a mobile device 15, 20, arewithin the useful range of each other's limited wireless signal. Each ofthe two users has an account with the cloud service 100, so each of thetwo users also has an anonymous ID associated with their respectiveaccounts. The cloud service 100 binds the information associated withthe account to the anonymous ID.

A first user of a first mobile device 15 transmits their anonymous IDusing the limited range wireless module 220 of their mobile device 15.

A second mobile device 20 receives, via the limited range wirelessmodule 220 of their mobile device 20 only when within range of thelimited range signal of the transmitting first mobile device 15, theanonymous ID transmitted by the first mobile device 15. The secondmobile device 20 to transmits the received anonymous ID to the cloudservice 100 via the Internet connection module 210 of the second mobiledevice 20, under control of the user, or the second mobile device canautomatically transmit the received anonymous ID to the cloud service100 via the Internet connection module 210 of the second mobile device20 in some embodiments. The cloud service 100 then transmits theinformation bound to the anonymous ID to the second mobile device 20subject to the privacy settings for the information associated with theaccount. The received information maybe displayed on the display screen250 of the second mobile device 20.

It is worthy of noting that the cloud service 100 is not limited to onlytwo mobile devices 15, 20. In other words, more than two mobile devices200 may be transmitting their respective anonymous IDs at any giventime, some or all of which may be received also by a plurality of mobiledevices 200. As long as the mobile devices are physically located withinthe useful range of the limited range wireless signals of their devices,the mobile devices 200 may receive a transmitted anonymous ID. Forexample, in a meeting room, perhaps six mobile devices 200 may each betransmitting their user's anonymous IDs, and each of the six mobiledevices 200 may receive the anonymous IDs transmitted by the other 5mobile devices, providing the respective users an opportunity to accessthe cloud service 100 and obtain information about the user of one ormore of the received anonymous IDs, according to their desire. Ofcourse, six mobile devices 200 is merely an example and any number ofmobile devices 200 greater than one will provide the same opportunity.

It is also worthy of noting that a user of the cloud service 100 maywant to limit what information associated to their account is availableto different recipients of their anonymous ID. Here the cloud service100 can provide a distinct advantage over peer-to-peer sharing ofinformation, say via the use of WI-FI Direct, because the cloud service100 can provide the user with layers of privacy controls and settingwhich are set up for the account. For example, the user may wish to haveonly a public profile available to anyone who transmits their anonymousID to the cloud service 100, but is willing to provide photos of theirrecent vacation to a select group of friends similarly to what can bedone on some social networking websites through privacy settings.Another advantage the cloud service 100 holds over those same socialnetworking sites is the simplified manor in which the initial contact ismade. Please note that mobile devices can simultaneously be broadcastersand recipients.

Please refer now to FIG. 3, which is a flow chart of binding ananonymous ID to information associated with an account with the cloudservice 100. Although step 330 concerning privacy setting of the flowchart 300 is preferred, step 300 may be omitted from the methodaccording to design considerations. Method 300 may contain the followingsteps:

Step 310: Create an account with the cloud service 100.

Step 320: Create information associated with the account. Thisinformation is stored in the cloud service.

Step 330: (Optionally) create privacy settings for the informationassociated with the account. Normally, these privacy settings may be setby the user for their account via an Internet connection with the cloudservice.

Step 340: Create an anonymous ID bound to the information associatedwith the account. The anonymous ID may be assigned by the cloud service,by the mobile device software, or created by the user. The anonymous IDalso may be permanent or changeable according to design considerations.

Please refer now to FIG. 4, which is a flow chart illustrating sharinginformation between mobile devices according to an embodiment of theinvention. Method 400 may contain the following steps:

Step 410: Mobile device 1 broadcasts an anonymous ID using the limitedrange wireless signal module of the mobile device 1.

Step 420: Mobile device 2 receives the anonymous ID via the limitedrange wireless signal module of the mobile device 2.

Step 430: Mobile device 2 transmits the received anonymous ID to thecloud service using the Internet connection module of the mobile device2.

Step 440: The cloud service transmits the information bound to theanonymous ID to the mobile device 2, subject to any privacy settings, ifpresent, for the account providing the information bound to theanonymous ID.

Please refer now to FIG. 5, which is a flow chart illustrating sharinginformation between mobile devices according to another embodiment ofthe invention. Method 500 may contain the following steps:

Step 510: Mobile device 1 requests an anonymous ID using the limitedrange wireless signal module of the mobile device 1.

Step 520: Mobile device 2 receives the request for an anonymous ID viathe limited range wireless signal module of the mobile device 2. Mobiledevice 2 may transmit an anonymous ID associated with the user of themobile device 2 via the limited range wireless signal module of themobile device 2.

Step 530: Mobile device 1 receives the anonymous ID transmitted by thelimited range wireless signal module of the mobile device 2.

Step 540: Mobile device 1 transmits the received anonymous ID to thecloud service using the Internet connection module of the mobile device1.

Step 550: The cloud service transmits the information bound to theanonymous ID to the mobile device 1, subject to any privacy settings, ifpresent, for the account providing the information bound to theanonymous ID.

A difference between the method 400 and the method 500 is that themobile device 2 may not transmit the anonymous ID until after a requestfor an anonymous ID has been received.

After a mobile device 200 has received the information bound to theanonymous ID from the cloud service 100, the user of the mobile device200 can then optionally request certain actions such as:

-   1. Send a message through the cloud service 100.-   2. Request to set up a secure local link to the mobile device 200    that was the source of the transmitted anonymous ID to transfer    information.-   3. Request the cloud service 100 to link the user associated with    the anonymous ID as a “friend” in their account.

For at least cases 2 and 3 above, the user of the mobile device 200 thatwas the source of the transmitted anonymous ID could be given the optionto accept or deny the request.

The user of the mobile device 200 that was the source of the transmittedanonymous ID can, in some embodiments, request the cloud service 100 tolimit which other users can receive information about their identity,and can request actions. For example, it can be useful to limit accessto other users who are existing friends or connections of the user onother social networking sites (e.g. Facebook, LinkedIn). This, as wellas many of the further refinements below, may be implemented accordingto privacy settings for the account of the transmitted anonymous ID.

As a further refinement, the user of the mobile device 200 that was thesource of the transmitted anonymous ID can request the cloud service 100to only release certain information to users. For example, the cloudservice could provide limited information such as gender, a picture oravatar, but not release the real identity of the user associated withthe anonymous ID.

As a further refinement, the user of the mobile device 200 that was thesource of the transmitted anonymous ID, in some embodiments, can requestthe cloud service 100 to limit what actions the recipient user can take.For example the user of the mobile device 200 that was the source of thetransmitted anonymous ID may not permit any friend requests.

As a further refinement, the user of the mobile device 200 that was thesource of the transmitted anonymous ID, in some embodiments, can requestthe cloud service to release different information to different classesof recipients. For example, existing friends may receive more completeinformation, while unknown recipients of the anonymous ID might receivelimited information.

As a further refinement, in some embodiments, the cloud service 100 canconnect to other cloud services linked to other ID's the user of themobile device 200 that was the source of the transmitted anonymous ID,and allow a recipient of the anonymous ID to view information from thosecloud services. For example, the service could connect to Facebook, andprovide information from the source user's Facebook account to therecipients.

As a further refinement, in some embodiments, the user of the mobiledevice 200 that was the source of the transmitted anonymous ID canrequest the cloud service 100 to limit visibility of the user'sinformation to a specific range of times, such as only between specifictimes of day, or only for a specific period of time.

As a further refinement, in some embodiments, the user of the mobiledevice 200 that source of the transmitted anonymous ID can request thecloud service to limit visibility of their user's information to aspecific geographic location. For example, the user may only want theirinformation visible when they at work.

As a further refinement, in some embodiments, the user of the mobiledevice 200 that was the source of the transmitted anonymous ID canoptionally control the transmit power setting, which will determine thelocal area in which the anonymous ID can be received.

As a further refinement, in some embodiments, the users of the mobiledevices 15, 20 automatically share information with the group that is“local” and connected. Groups can be defined through a social networkingservice.

It is also possible to combine various privacy control limits into acompound limit. For example, visibility can be limited to a time andplace.

Any combination of these embodiments may or may not be combined in anyfashion without departing from the intended scope of the invention.

In summary, the present disclosure includes transmission of an anonymousID by a limited range wireless module of first mobile device, thereception of the anonymous ID by a second mobile device, and an Internetconnection module of the second mobile device sending the anonymous IDto a cloud service, which then sends information about the user of thefirst mobile device to the second mobile device. This simplified socialconnection method allows users of mobile devices who are geographicallylocal to easily share information with other users.

Those skilled in the art will readily observe that numerousmodifications and alterations of the device and method may be made whileretaining the teachings of the invention. Accordingly, the abovedisclosure should be construed as limited only by the metes and boundsof the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A mobile device comprising: an internetconnection module; a limited range wireless signal module; a centralprocessing unit; and a memory comprising computer code, which whenexecuted by the central processing unit, causes the mobile device toreceive a first anonymous ID via the limited range wireless signalmodule, transmit the received first anonymous ID to a remote computerusing the Internet connection module, and receive user informationcorresponding to an account bound to the first anonymous ID from theremote computer according to a privacy setting of the account alreadyset in the remote computer before the anonymous ID is received by themobile device, the privacy setting being used to set an amount of theuser information corresponding to the account allowed to be accessed bythe mobile device; wherein the user information corresponding to theaccount is stored in the remote computer before the mobile devicetransmits the received anonymous ID to the remote computer.
 2. Themobile device of claim 1 wherein the memory further comprises computercode, which when executed by the central processing unit, causes themobile device to set privacy settings and the remote computer isconfigured to transmit the user information bound to the anonymous IDaccording to the privacy settings.
 3. The mobile device of claim 1wherein the memory further comprises computer code, which when executedby the central processing unit, causes the mobile device to receive thefirst anonymous ID when broadcasted by a limited range wireless signal.4. The mobile device of claim 1 wherein the memory further comprisescomputer code, which when executed by the central processing unit,causes the mobile device to transmit, using the limited range wirelesssignal module of the mobile device, a request for the anonymous ID. 5.The mobile device of claim 1 wherein the memory further comprisescomputer code, which when executed by the central processing unit,causes the mobile device to receive the anonymous ID via the limitedrange wireless signal module of the mobile device only when within rangeof a limited range wireless signal of a transmitting device.